Aim: Stem cells hold great promise for brain and spinal cord injuries (SCI), but cell survival following transplantation to adult central nervous system has been poor. Salvianolic acid B (Sal B) has been shown to improve functional recovery in braininjured rats. The present study was designed to determine whether Sal B could improve transplanted mesenchymal stem cell (MSC) survival in SCI rats. Methods: SCI rats were treated with Sal B. The Basso-Beatie-Bresnahan (BBB) scale was used to test the functional recovery. Sal B was used to protect MSC from being damaged by TNF-α in vitro. Bromodeoxyuridine-labeled MSC were transplanted into SCI rats with Sal B intraperitoneal injection, simul-taneously. MSC were examined, and the functional recovery of the SCI rats was tested. Results: Sal B treatment significantly reduced the lesion area from 0.26±0.05 mm 2 to 0.15±0.03 mm 2 (P<0.01) and remarkably raised the BBB scores on d 28, post-injury, from 7.3±0.9 to 10.5±1.3 (P<0.05), compared with the phosphate-buffered saline (PBS) control group. MSC were protected from the damage of TNF-α by Sal B. The number of surviving MSC in the MSC plus Sal B groups were 1143.3±195.6 and 764.0±81.3 on d 7 and 28, post-transplantation, more than those in the MSC group, which was 569.3±72.3 and 237.0±61.3, respectively (P<0.05). Rats with MSC transplanted and Sal B injected obtained higher BBB scores than those with MSC transplanted alone (P<0.05) and PBS (P<0.01). Conclusion: Sal B provides neuroprotection to SCI and promotes the survival of MSC in vitro and after cell transplantation to the injured spinal cord in vivo.

This study explored the relations between the social support network of mothers of children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), perceived social support, and their subjective wellbeing. The participants were mothers of children with ASD in Shanghai. Their social support network structure was explored via the nomination method. Perceived social support was measured using the Revised Social Provisions Scale for Autism (R-SPS-A), and the mothers’ subjective wellbeing was assessed using the Index of Wellbeing, Index of General Affect. A significant correlation was observed between the subjective wellbeing of mothers of children with ASD and perceived social support. Meanwhile, perceived social support was significantly correlated with the effectiveness of overall social support. Finally, perceived social support was also significantly correlated with the network size of social support. Moreover, the effectiveness of social support was significantly associated with the network size of social support and was highly significantly associated with the degree of intimacy of social support. Furthermore, the network size of instrumental support has a significant influence on all perceived social support subdimensions. Overall, social support effectiveness plays an important role in the social support network mechanism on perceived social support and subjective wellbeing in China.